GRCA Current

December, 2018 • Volume 23 Number 10

GRCA General Membership Conservation Area & Membership pass fees will remain unchanged at $130. Individual Season Passes will be Chair Helen Jowett Nature Centre Fees discontinued due to a significant decline in sales Vice-Chair Chris White GRCA conservation areas and nature centres and reduced customer demand for this product. Townships of Amaranth, East review their fees annually. Nature centre programs All nature centre and conservation area fees can Garafraxa, Melancthon and are funded through these fees combined with be found online at www.grandriver.ca. Southgate and Town of Grand budgeted levy support. Admission, camping and Valley other fees cover the operating costs of GRCA TBA conservation areas. Townships of Mapleton Final GRCA Current and Wellington North TBA Nature centres and conservation areas face a similar challenge in providing affordable access to As 2018 draws to a close, we set our sights on Township of Centre Wellington the year ahead and look forward to changes that TBA outdoor recreation and educational experiences, while ensuring enough funds are available to will help better support our diverse audience. Town of Erin, Townships of support infrastructure needs and capital Following a consultant’s review of our Guelph/Eramosa and Puslinch Chris White improvements. communications practices and activities in 2017, a number of changes were recommended. One of City of Guelph In 2019, fees for school programs, day camps, these changes included the end of this publication. Bob Bell, TBA and other programs at GRCA nature centres will Region of Waterloo increase between three and 15 per cent. These Beginning in January 2019, we will no longer be Les Armstrong, Jim Erb, Sue increases will help ensure their sustainability, publishing GRCA Current; however, we will Foxton, Michael Harris, Helen Jowett, while remaining competitive with similar outdoor continue to publish the Grand Actions newsletter. Geoff Lorentz, Kathryn McGarry, Jane education providers in . Through this publication, readers will receive the Mitchell, Joe Nowak, Warren Stauch same great content and informative articles, with Municipality of North Perth Unlike nature centres, GRCA conservation areas the goal of moving towards a fresh, engaging and and Township of Perth East operate on a break-even basis. User fees are meant more frequent online publication in the future. In TBA to generate sufficient revenue to offset planned order to keep our municipal partners up-to-date Halton Region Cindy Lunau expenses for the upcoming year. When the on the information received and any decisions conservation areas generate a surplus, it is placed City of Hamilton George Stojanovic made by the General Membership, the GRCA will into a stabilization fund to be used for future park be distributing a concise board meeting summary Oxford County Bruce Banbury needs. Operating budget efficiencies are attained via email, shortly after each monthly board as a result of the integration of the conservation meeting. Brian Coleman, Joan Gatward area program with other program areas such as water management, nature centres and property. City of Dave Neumann, Vic Prendergast In 2019, most conservation area fees will remain CAO’s Report Haldimand and Norfolk Counties unchanged; however, a few areas will be impacted. TBA GRCA conservation areas continue to be a Additional vehicles on a campsite will increase popular spot for both summer and winter to $14, matching the fee currently charged at activities with revenue at the end of October automatic entry gates. Nightly camping fees will reaching $9.05 million, surpassing the 2018 be standardized to eliminate price changes budget of $8 million. This surplus will be used for between peak and shoulder seasons. Pool future capital and infrastructure investment in the admission fees at Brant and Byng Island will parks. A number of conservation areas remain increase from $1 to $2 following changes to public open year-round, including Belwood Lake, Guelph pool operation regulations requiring a swim test to Lake, Laurel Creek, Pinehurst Lake, Rockwood, be administered to younger swimmers creating the and Shade’s Mills. need to hire additional lifeguards. Seasonal camping fees will increase by three per cent in Watershed municipalities are in the process of 2019 to help support investment in park facilities appointing GRCA board members to serve for the such as washroom upgrades, roads and electrical next four years. An orientation program is being infrastructure in these campgrounds. developed for new and returning members, which

www.grandriver.ca Grand River Conservation Authority Source Protection Meeting Summary The Grand River Source Protection Authority approved an update to the Lake Erie Source Protection Region Partnership Agreement that will help ensure the safety of municipal drinking water systems and that the duties and responsibilities of the Source Protection Authorities are clearly defined. These amendments include the provision that source water protection planning is incorporated in the early stages of the municipal drinking water supply process. The goal of these changes is to ensure that municipal residential drinking water systems are protected before the water supply is provided to the public. GRCA conservation areas and nature centres review their fees annually. Nature centre programs are funded through these fees combined with budgeted levy support. Admission, camping and other fees The amendments recommended by the cover the operating costs of GRCA conservation areas. In 2019, fees for school programs, day camps, Lake Erie Source Protection Region and other programs at GRCA nature centres will increase between three and 15 per cent. Most Management Committee incorporated Clean conservation area fees will remain unchanged; however, a few areas will be impacted. Water Act Section 48 considerations, specifically, additional responsibilities of the Source Protection Authority. These will include an overview of the Conservation to update floodplain mapping within the additional responsibilities include reviewing Authorities Act, GRCA by-laws, and the Gr and River wate rshed that was presented to technical work for the purpose of identifying recently updated strategic plan. GRCA staff the GRCA board in 2017. The GRCA will anticipated amendments to the source will also be making program area cover half of the project cost, and the federal protection plan, issuing notices to the presentations in the new year to help National Disaster Mitigation Program will drinking water system owner, and ensuring familiarize new board members with the data and intellectual property agreements are cover the remaining half. many areas of the organization. in place and maintained. The field work for the project is expected to be complete by late December. Company Hired for LiDAR Mapping City of Hamilton Levy The GRCA has hired Geomatics Data GRCA Current Solutions Inc. for approximately $310,000 to This issue of was Update published in December 2018. use bathymetric LiDAR technology to map a number of riverbeds in the watershed. At the hearing for the judicial review It is a summary of the November, 2018 application in Divisional Court held on business conducted by the Grand River Bathymetric LiDAR (Light Detection and October 30, the City of Hamilton brought Conservation Authority board and Ranging) technology uses laser light to get forward a new motion requesting that the committees, as well as other noteworthy geographical information about the ground judicial review be heard by a bilingual panel. happenings and topics of interest. surface underwater. Mounted in a plane, the lasers and sensors will capture topographical This request is due to the City of Hamilton’s The Grand River Conservation Authority data on the Grand, Conestogo and Speed contention that the French ve rsion of Section welcomes distribution, photocopying rivers and select tributaries. 27 of the Conservation Authorities Act is and forwarding of GRCA Current. relevant and will assist the court in Next board meeting: This data will provide information about interpreting the meaning and legislative the depth and shape of the ground beneath January 25 at 9:30 a.m., intent of the provisions under consideration. the water surface, which change significantly GRCA Administration Centre along natural water bodies. This information The panel granted the City’s request and a Subscribe to GRCA news: will be merged with above water bilingual panel will be constituted. This www.grandriver.ca/subscribe topographical LiDAR data that was recently matter will be heard at the next sittings of acquired by the province, creating a seamless View meeting agendas and reports: the Divisional Court in February 2019. As a ground surface elevation model for the https://calendar.grandriver.ca/directors result, the outcome of the proceedings will watershed. The derived data will be added to View coming events: the GRCA’s GIS mapping platform. not likely be known prior to the final GRCA www.grandriver.ca/events budget presentation and ge neral levy vote in This project is part of the five-year forecast February 2019.

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